Currently, a conventional needle syringe is typically used for infusing fluid medicaments into a user. The conventional syringe includes a fluid-medicament reservoir typically of cylindrical cross-section as well as a plunger member for injecting the fluid into the patient. Following insertion of the needle into the patient, the plunger member is depressed and the medicament is infused into the patient. Although the cylinder is typically graduated, the infusion process is not easily controllable and due to friction between the plunger and the cylindrical medicament holder, it is difficult to infuse accurate quantities of medicament into the user. However, there are maladies such as pain-relief, which require the infusion of exact quantities of medicaments, in order to maintain the health of the patient.
In addition, due to the cylindrical cross-section of the conventional syringe, portions of the medication are not injected into the patient and these portions remain inside the syringe. This causes wastage of the medicament.
Furthermore, due to the relatively large size of the conventional syringe device it is inconvenient for use in confined spaces. Additionally, if several medicaments are required to be injected into the patient, it is necessary for the medical personnel to remove the plunger from the syringe and refill the syringe cylinder with the new medicament and repeat the infusion process. Thus operation can be very uncomfortable and painful for the patient, who may remain with the needle inserted within his body, while the medical staff commences refilling the cylinder.
The following prior art is believed to be the current status of the art:
PCT Publication No. WO 2006/027548 describes a pump having an inlet port for connecting to a source and an outlet for supplying a pumped fluid. A rotor is rotatable within a pump housing and the inlet and the outlet ports are located around the path of the rotor within the housing.
German Patent No. DE 19916252 describes a low-volume fluid pump having a rotating shaft with a flat surface and including a fluid inlet port.
PCT Publication No. WO 2008/02072 describes an implantable delivery device including a fluid input port and a fluid output port.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,399,074 describes a centrifugal blood pump having a fluid input port and a fluid output port.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,578,012 describes a medical pump apparatus including a flexible diaphragm and a rotating vane disposed within a pumping chamber. A motor rotates a revolving hook which engages the drive rod within the pumping chamber. The pumping chamber includes an inlet for providing a fluid to the chamber and an outlet for tube for supplying the fluid to the patient.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,179,583 describes a metering device for pressurized liquids having a rotor including a free piston operating at right angles to a rotor axis. The rotor is retained within a stator having a fluid inlet port and a fluid outlet port.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,331,770 describes a disposable device for treatment and promoting healing of damaged body tissue. The device includes two fluid pumps. The first pump includes a fluid inlet port and a fluid outlet port. The first pump pumps a first fluid and the second pump pumps a second fluid.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,614,857 describes a medical pump including a rotary pump having an inlet and outlet.
The cited prior art describes prior art pumps having a fluid input port. The prior art pumps do not include a reservoir for storing the fluid to be pumped contained within the pump.
US Published Patent Application No. 2010/0280502 describes a medical pump including a reservoir for storing a fluid-medicament. In the prior art device, the fluid is pumped into an outlet of the device by the action of a moving piston.
This prior art describes a medical pump which includes a piston for supplying the fluid-medicament to a patient.